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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26406712">When the Flower Dies</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lori_yuy/pseuds/lori_yuy'>lori_yuy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997), Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020), Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Anger, Other, Sadness, Some Quick TsengRu moments, reflections</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:48:09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,499</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26406712</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lori_yuy/pseuds/lori_yuy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Cloud and company visits Elmyra to inform her of what happened to Aerith.  Down the coast of the continent, Reeve takes it upon himself to do the same for Aerith's long term guardian.</p><p>Warning: Contains spoilers for original FF7 and Crisis Core.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aerith Gainsborough &amp; Tseng, Aerith Gainsborough/Cloud Strife, Aerith Gainsborough/Tseng, Elmyra Gainsborough &amp; Cloud Strife, Elmyra Gainsborough &amp; Tseng, Rufus Shinra &amp; Tseng, Rufus Shinra/Tseng, Tseng &amp; Reeve Tuesti</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>When the Flower Dies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This is my attempt at writing the emotional toll of Aerith's death from some side characters' perspective.  I'm not sure if I captured it well but I hope I did!  I'm deviating from canon storyline because I wanted to explore the dynamics between Elmyra and Cloud.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The sound of the white materia's glassy bounce echoed through the chamber as it fell.  The chime was heavenly as it finally reached the waters and fell in.  Cloud's eyes were wide with fear and anguish as he saw the blood follow the clean lines of the blade, his own buster sword still clenched in his hands tightly, his muscles strained from fighting the earlier urge to kill the girl himself from being mind controlled.</p><p>He saw the smile that was still on her face, peaceful, as if she couldn't feel her own demise.  Each second passed agonizingly slow as he saw the smile fade. Sephiroth, his Jenova clone rather, laughed maniacally before disappearing, leaving Cloud facing his worst fear.</p><p>"AERITH!!!!!!" He heard a scream, but it was his own voice that he no longer recognized.</p><p>The rest of the party had come and bid their goodbyes individually. Cloud carried her outside, taking the ribbon from the platform that used to wrap around her long wavy hair.  He lowered her gently into the clear waters. This is the last time he will see her. He felt like he was made of glass and was breaking into a gazillion pieces as he watched her body sink into the watery depths.</p><p>Aerith had opened him up in no time when they had first met. She was spunky and funny, spontaneous, perceptive, mischievous, but loving to a fault.  She had dragged him along doing things that he would never have chosen to do on his own in a million years.  Spending an afternoon picking flowers, high-fiving the girl out of the blue for every little thing done right, fighting an onslaught of enemies in a coliseum, dancing like a queen, getting put into a dress with full makeup, and facing Don Corneo to save his childhood friend....all of that now only exists as his memories.</p><p> </p><p>~...~</p><p> </p><p>Cloud swallowed nervously as he and the party stood outside the old wooden doors. His heartbeat created a loud thumping sound in his ears as his blood rushed along.  Tifa gave his hand a squeeze before nodding to him. He took in a deep breath before knocking on the door.</p><p>"Coming!" Marlene's voice rang from the other side before the door opened. A gasp of surprise came from the little girl before a squeal of delight escaped her.</p><p>"DADDY!!! TIFA!!!" She tackled Barret head first as Barret picked her up like it was just yesterday when they saw each other.</p><p>The joyous occasion was brief however as they had come to pay the elderly woman a visit for a specific reason.  Barret had put his little girl in bed for the first time in months prior to the talk.</p><p>Elmyra took a sweeping look at the ragtag group, added onto with new faces she did not recognize, gathered in the tiny space of her foyer.  There was one face she expected to see that was not there. The young blond SOLDIER's expression already told her everything.</p><p>"Mrs. Gainsborough. I'm sorry to inform you that Aerith ... didn't make it."</p><p>Her lips tightened as the words she didn't want to hear spilled from the young SOLDIER's mouth.</p><p>"We encountered Sephiroth along the way and he....he took her life." Cloud attempted to lighten the impact with word choice.</p><p>"He KILLED HER is what you mean to say." Elmyra's cold tone was no surprise, they had all expected the elderly woman not to take the news well.</p><p>"I'm so sorry." Cloud bowed to the woman. "I failed her....I ...." Cloud took a deep breath before continuing.  Tifa gave him a worried look as Cloud struggled with the next sentence, knowing how harshly Cloud took it himself.</p><p>"....I almost killed her. I was being controlled by Sephiroth's mental influence." Cloud avoided eye contact with Elmyra as he finally said it.</p><p>Cloud pulled something out of his pocket then, a strip of pink fabric from Aerith's hair ribbon, and placed it on the dining table.  Elmyra stared at the pink fabric for a long time. She realized belatedly that Cloud and the others all had a similar strip wrapped around their arm, wrist, or whereever visible.</p><p>Years ago, Aerith had returned home with the pink tie in her hair one day out of the blue, claiming cheerfully that her boyfriend gave it to her.  Elmyra was surprised to hear she had a boyfriend and was curious as to what kind of person he was.</p><p>
  <em>"He's a SOLDIER with REALLY pretty blue eyes." Aerith had told her then.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"And Tseng just let you have a boyfriend?" Elmyra remembered asking.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"Tseng's fine with Zack. They're friends actually." Aerith claimed with a smile. "Zack's really nice mom, I think you'd like him too!"</em>
</p><p> </p><p>"Um......" Tifa's voice brought her back to the present. She had drifted into her own thoughts. </p><p>"....thank you for taking the time to tell me in person, but could I ask for one favor?" Elmyra started.</p><p>They looked at her expectantly.</p><p>"There's a Turk who looked after Aerith for most of her life. His name is Tseng...I don't know if you all have seen him..long black hair, Wutaiian, tall." Elmyra rambled.  The party nodded acknowleding they knew who she was talking about before she continued.  "I want you all to find him and tell him what happened to Aerith. He sometimes patrols Sector 8."</p><p>She did not like the frown forming on Cloud's face then.</p><p>"Ma'am....I'm sorry to tell you but that Turk is dead."  Cloud's flat tone did not lessen the impact of the information to Elmyra.</p><p>"....what?" she mumbled in shock.</p><p>"He's dead ma'am." Cloud repeated. "Sephiroth got him at the Temple of the Ancients...Aerith saw it herself."</p><p> </p><p>Something broke in the elderly woman. Her eyes suddenly flashed with untamed anger.</p><p>"Tseng would NEVER have let Aerith get hurt!" She yelled at Cloud suddenly. "Who was looking after her?? All of you in this big group and nobody looked after my girl?"</p><p>She didn't know why she was upset now. She only felt a numbness when they told her that Aerith was dead...but now that she knew Tseng was also dead, her heart shattered.</p><p> </p><p>Cloud was taken aback at the unexpected animosity. He eyed the mother like she was crazy.</p><p>"I hope you're not serious ma'am. That fucking Turk took her to Shinra...in exchange for a little girl's life." He said as he pointed upstairs where Marlene was sleeping.</p><p>"YOU let my baby girl die! YOU almost KILLED her yourself!! What do you know about her and Tseng? NOTHING!! Nothing I tell you!" Elmyra was hysterical and Tifa stepped in behind the elderly woman to prevent her from charging at Cloud and to try to calm her down.</p><p>Cloud's temper flared at the accusations. "I LOVED HER FOR YOUR INFORMATION." Vincent was now holding Cloud back as he was shaking with anger.</p><p>Elmyra screamed at him. "Loved? LOVED? What do you know about loving her when you've barely known her for a few months?? Only a few months and she's dead."  Elmyra broke down into tears then. ".....Tseng knew her.....he loved her...." her trembling voice was barely audible.</p><p>Cloud's eyes teared up as the words stung his heart. "I did in fact love her. That fucking Turk USED her!"</p><p>"Well at least he was HUMAN. You...you're a monster." The elderly woman replied bitterly.  Somehow the fact that she was telling him he was less than human hurt him more than her saying he did not love Aerith or really know her.  Cloud about lost his temper there if Vincent and the party didn't excuse themselves right then and dragged him out of the elderly woman's house.</p><p>Elmyra sobbed into her arms at the table once they had left.  Cloud had no right to be here telling her that he had feelings for her daughter, but yet she knew she had wronged him with what she said in her anguish.  She at least owed the young man an apology, but they had already gone.  The group that called themselves Aerith's friends however definitely did not know nor understand the intricate and delicate relationship between Aerith and Tseng.</p><p>Elmyra had watched the two grow up together in a sense and knew everything there was to know about the Turk in question. </p><p>He was assigned to Aerith since early in his career as a teenager and previously had taken care of the girl while she was living in Shinra before ever meeting Elmyra.</p><p>She still remembers the first time he showed up at her door. He was young yet intimidating, but gave them space when Aerith told him she didn't want to go.  After so many visits, Aerith laid out her first "obstacle course" on the upper floor at night and the young Turk tripped over his own Shinra logo mug that he gave to them in the early hours of the morning.  She had whacked him on the head with a broomstick that time for trespassing, and every time after when he showed up at her house. The same broom stick is still sitting in a corner of the kitchen now.  She wasn't so gentle the first time it happened, knocking him into the stair rails, but after Aerith put in her word it became more of a gentle whack as a reminder and warning.</p><p>Aerith used to tell her stories about Tseng showing up to keep her company at the church, asking her about her day and sometimes sharing his own workday with her.  She had watched him engage intellectually with Aerith on numerous occasions, sitting at their dining table, about his reasons for helping Shinra find the Promised Land.  As a young man, Tseng believed in the positive impact that Shinra and Aerith could bring for humanity if they managed to find the place under cooperation.</p><p>Tseng trusted that Aerith had powers and she remembers the admiration he held for Aerith clear in his eyes.  The young man had respectfully and professionally kept distance from his emotions even though Elmyra could tell the Turk had fallen in love with Aerith.  It surprised her truly when Aerith told her about the SOLDIER boyfriend and how Tseng told her he was okay with it because Zack made Aerith happy.</p><p>He had taken 15 long years to keep her from the grasps of Shinra before he was forced to take her back there.</p><p>She sobbed into the night until she had no more tears to shed.</p><p> </p><p>~...~</p><p> </p><p>It felt like consciousness was a fleeting thing for the longest time.  His mind floated in between the land of the living and the land of the dead, seeing bright white so many times he wasn't so sure he really was alive anymore.  Perhaps this was the end...until he was punched out of the Lifestream literally by the very girl he guarded for years.</p><p>He gasped out loud as his eyes snapped open. A dream?  The room's lights strained his eyes that have opened for the first time in months.</p><p>"Ah...so you live." A voice that sounded somewhat familiar spoke next to him.</p><p>His eyes struggled to focus, but once it did, a cat shaped toy was sitting on his chest, staring down into his face.  The voice definitely did not come from that. He turned his head slightly, wincing at the shot of pain in his head from the movement.</p><p>Reeve Tuesti.</p><p>"How are you feeling Director Tseng?" the slightly older man asked gently.</p><p>"Like I've died." Tseng replied.</p><p>The Director of Urban Development, formerly a friend of Director Veld, chuckled lightly at his deadpan response.</p><p>"How many fingers do you see?" Reeve held up two hands.</p><p>"Eight."</p><p>"Oh good, your eyes and brain seem to be functioning well enough." Reeve replied.</p><p>"Why...where am I?" Tseng formed his question slowly.</p><p>"Junon Hospital...Veld brought you here after your unfortunate encounter with Sephiroth."</p><p>Ah...so he was saved because Reeve was friends with Veld. Tseng was never one to ask for help, but he should appreciate the effort they took to bring him back to the land of the living.</p><p>"Thank you Director Tuesti....but why are you here?" Tseng asked as he watched the other man's expressions for clues.</p><p> </p><p>Reeve was uncharacteristically quiet. He had always been on the quieter side, but the combination of silence and the expression on his face made Tseng feel uneasy.  After a considerable amount of time had passed in silence, Reeve grabbed Tseng's hands, holding it and squeezing tightly. The sudden gesture took Tseng by surprise.</p><p>"What are you....??" he stopped as Reeve's eyes bore into him.</p><p>"Aerith is dead."</p><p>The silence of the hospital room was too much to bear, the only relief is the chirp of a cricket that had found its way into the room from outside.  The visions and the conversations he had in his delirious dream state flooded back to his memory and he closed his eyes as a wave of pain hit him like a tsunami. </p><p>Aerith and Zack, in the Lifestream, telling him he had to go back. Them very literally sending him back the painful way. "You have to live." Aerith had said to him before he woke up.</p><p>Was that all not actually a dream?</p><p>Aerith is dead. The words were on repeat like a broken record reverberating in his head. He didn't even notice when he had tuned Reeve out.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>"...eng......"</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"..........."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"....tse....."</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"................"</em>
</p><p>"TSENG!!" a hard squeeze on his hand from Reeve brought his wits back.</p><p>"I'm alright...just give me a moment." Tseng finally answered before taking a few deep breaths.</p><p> </p><p>The Cait Sith model that sat on his chest shifted, lifting and dropping a pink strip of fabric.  "It's for you." The cat toy said with a sad expression on its face.</p><p>Tseng stared a good minute at the strip of fabric before he recognized what it was.  How could he forget? Zack had pestered him for a week to help him pick out something for Aerith before they went on a mission to Modeoheim.  He had finally acquiesced and pointed Zack towards the pink hair ribbon. He remembers secretly smiling when he saw it tied around Aerith's hair weeks after they returned from the Modeoheim mission. Zack was no longer around. Tseng had failed Zack.</p><p>And now he has failed Aerith too.</p><p>He swallowed hard. She was his first mission as a rookie Turk. He had been indignant when he first found out he was being assigned to babysit a little girl.  As his superiors touted the importance of the girl and explained her background, he had found himself fascinated with the possibilities.  He did not anticipate having fallen for the girl eventually as the long years dragged out and they both matured.  He into a ruthless Turk, fitting to be the leader of the elite Shinra group, and she into a beautiful flower, blooming brightly in the filth that is the slums.</p><p>He thought back to when she had escaped. Her mother had perished then, he had found her body at the Sector 5 station the day after their escape and had been ordered to take her body back to Professor Hojo's lab for sample preservation. "Sample Preservation." The term made him sick but he had a duty to fulfill as a Shinra Turk.</p><p>He eventually had traced the lost little girl to the house in the north quarter of the Sector 5 slums.  The woman who lived there, whose husband had just recently passed away as a troop sent to fight on the frontlines of the Wutai war, had apparently taken Aerith in.  She was kind but brave, protecting and shielding Aerith from him when he first showed up at their house. She had treated Aerith like she was her own child.</p><p>Elmyra must be hurting so much with the news of Aerith's passing.</p><p>The elderly woman did not have any delusions about him and his job, but had let him into her house to periodically check on Aerith.  Whether it was out of fear of the Shinra Turks or out of the goodness of her heart, it didn't matter.  He had given her an allowance for raising Aerith monthly, but she had refused the payment every time.  He eventually just used the money to help purchase necessities for the family himself. It paid for Aerith's schooling fees, the family's groceries, clothes, home basics, seeds, gardening tools, soil packs. He helped deflect part of their utility fees with the extras.</p><p>His lips twitched a bit at the memory of the first time he tripped on Aerith's "Turks trap" and Elmyra had bore down on him sneaking around early morning with the determination to exterminate him like a rat with a broomstick.  It eventually became something of a customary endearing gesture when he visited her house to see Aerith.</p><p>Aerith is gone now.</p><p>He finally let go of Reeve's hand, clenching his hands into fists and closing his eyes, turning his head towards the wall.</p><p>"Thank you for telling me Director Tuesti. Could you leave me alone for a bit now?"</p><p> </p><p>~...~</p><p> </p><p>The winds roared outside like the sound of dozens of trains speeding down the tracks, lifting the plants from her garden and strewing everything around like toys.  She hunkered down with Marlene, trying her best to keep a calm demeanor for the little girl's sake.</p><p>That's when she heard the knock on her door. She thought her eyes were playing tricks on her as she saw a familiar shadow through the doors.  She quickly pulled the wooden doors open to reveal Tseng.</p><p>"I thought....I thought they said you were dead...." she said in disbelief.</p><p>"I almost did die. No time to talk, you need to evacuate Midgar. Take Marlene with you." His voice was commanding.</p><p>They made it down to the Sector 5 station when several blinding flashes passed them overhead.  Tseng looked up to see what looked like weapon blasts heading directly towards Shinra Tower.  A second later, the deafening explosion sounded all around them. Tseng had frozen in place as he stared in horror. The top half of Shinra Tower broke in two right in front of his eyes.  The President...Rufus Shinra had still been up there in the building directing the efforts to deflect the planetary weapon's attacks.</p><p>Tseng's ghastly expression was painful for Elmyra to see. She still couldn't even believe that he was still alive. He slunk down to the ground as Shinra Tower fell for all of Midgar to see.  Her motherly instincts quickly kicked into action and she pulled the man up from the ground. "Get up, we need to move quickly. Neither you or I can stay here."</p><p>He nodded dumbly before putting himself back together. Meteor was looming so close that they could feel the burn of the comet on their skin.  A bright white substance suddenly appeared blinding their vision, it rose from the ground. Tseng cursed and pushed Elmyra and Marlene into the cargo box of the nearby train before quickly shutting the door locking them in after he entered.</p><p>The howling sounds outside did not die down quickly, but once it did, the world outside was no longer recognizable. Little did they know that Tseng's action saved them from the grasps of a horror called Geostigma down the line.</p><p> </p><p>~...~</p><p> </p><p>They had found her in Kalm months after, traced them likely.  She still had Barret's little girl afterall. She had a hard time looking Cloud in the eyes, and he was just as unmotivated to look at her.</p><p>When they found an awkward moment where it was just the two of them in the room she finally spoke up.</p><p>"I'm sorry." She started.</p><p>"What for?" but Cloud knew what for.</p><p>"I didn't mean to imply you were any less human than any of us before.  It's a hard choice and a sacrifice on your part." She stared at her hands as she spoke.  "You boys....you boys sacrificed a lot for Shinra. Thank you for being Aerith's friend. She was isolated most of her life, there were really few people she could call friends growing up." She purposely chose not to mention his other feelings for Aerith...she probably would never see eye to eye with any SOLDIER on that.</p><p>"No need to thank me ma'am...she saved me in a way. She was always bubbly and positive." Cloud looked sheepishly at her.</p><p>"Thank Tseng for me if you ever see him too." She decided she's said enough.</p><p>"That Turk is still running around alive?" Cloud mumbled, remembering Vincent mentioning something about saving the guy from Kadaj's gang.</p><p>"...if he's lucky yes." She managed a smile and they both nodded in understanding.</p><p>In the sunny corner of the window, a ghostly figure of a girl smiled before she turned and left without anyone's notice.  She had other things to do...Sephiroth's consciousness was threatening to overtake the will of the planet.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This was inspired by parts in Crisis Core where the SOLDIERS felt inadequately human and Genesis and Angeal had given into the idea that they were monsters. The same in the Remake where Elmyra told Cloud that he had traded out his normal life for inhuman strength and power.  I imagine she had a lot of negative feelings towards Cloud until she eventually thought it through and forgave him.  If I made anyone sad, I'm sorry.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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